An Arrangement Between Friends
by Scattered Logic
Summary: Sometimes, even the best friendships require a little nudge. Genfic Albus Dumbledore, Sirius Black, James Potter.


The two boys crept steadily down the darkened corridor, careful to stay hidden under the invisibility cloak. In a nearby classroom, the clock chimed 2:00 a.m., the sound echoing faintly throughout the hallway. 

The boys halted in front of the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to the Headmaster's office.

"Are you sure this will work?" James hissed.

Sirius gave a one shouldered shrug. "Yeah, if the password hasn't changed. I heard Hagrid use it earlier today. He was trying to be quiet, but you know how loud he is."

James grinned. "Give it a go, then."

Sirius hesitated for a split second and then blurted out, "Peppermint toads."

The gargoyle leapt aside, and the wall behind it parted to reveal a spiral staircase. The boys crowded forward, and the wall closed behind them. For a breathless moment they were trapped in the dark, and then the staircase began to slowly move upward.

"Did you remember the string and the mirror?" James asked.

"Well, now's a fine time to ask, isn't it?" Sirius snorted. "Of course I remembered; they're in my pocket."

James fidgeted in his excitement, shifting quickly from foot to foot. "What do you think we'll find?"

"Dunno." Sirius shrugged. "But the rumour is there's lots of good stuff in it. One of the sixth years was asking Flitwick about it at breakfast. Flitwick brushed him off and said it was just a silly old legend, but the way he answered... I think there's something to it."

"Did they know you were listening?"

Sirius shook his head. "Nobody pays attention to firsties, you know that."

The stairway stopped moving in front of a polished oak door. A brass knocker gleamed softly in the flickering light of torches set on either side of the entrance.

James chewed his bottom lip and reached out. The doorknob turned easily in his hand, but there was a strange resistance before it opened, as if he was pushing the door through thick treacle. Then the sluggish feeling vanished, and the door swung silently open.

Moving in tandem, the boys entered the dim room. The only source of light was the bright moonlight streaming through the large windows, and they stared open-mouthed at the various instruments whirring and clicking throughout the office.

Finally, Sirius took a deep breath and whispered into James' ear. "We have to be quiet. We don't want to wake the portraits." He tilted his head toward the paintings of the former Headmasters that lined the walls.

James nodded, and then pointed to the Sorting Hat, resting on a shelf behind the Headmaster's desk. "There it is."

Sirius pulled his wand from his pocket. "Accio Sorting Hat," he said softly.

The hat rose from the shelf and drifted toward them. James plucked the hat from the air and pulled it under the cloak with them.

"Let's go over closer to the windows," Sirius said. "It will be easier to see."

The boys took the hat to the windows and crouched on the floor. Spreading the cloak wide to cover them as they knelt on the floor, they placed the Sorting Hat upside down. James balanced it with one hand, while Sirius pulled a mirror and a long string from his pocket. He quickly tied the string around the mirror and held it over the brim of the hat.

"Hold it steady," Sirius said, lowering the mirror. The mirror reached the bottom of the hat and stopped. Foreheads touching, the two boys bent over the hat, and sighed in disappointment at the sight that was reflected.

"It's just the inside of an old hat," James said. "There's nothing more--"

Even as he spoke, the mirror began to drop, falling rapidly out of sight. James gasped, and Sirius tightened his grip on the string. The mirror fell until the long string was fully extended, and Sirius could feel it swaying back and forth somewhere deep below the physical surface of the hat.

James frowned. "Um, how are we supposed to see the mirror from here?"

Sirius started to speak, then closed his mouth as the flaw in his logic became apparent.

"I guess we don't," he said reluctantly. He began to pull the mirror back up, but it jerked to a halt. "Damn. It's stuck on something."

"What?" James whispered.

"I can't see, can I?" Sirius spat out. "Just a minute."

He swung the string back and forth for a moment, then began to reel the mirror back in. "There," he said. "That did it."

Abruptly, the string went taut again. Frustrated, Sirius wrapped the end of the string around his hand several times to get better leverage and yanked hard. For an instant the mirror was free, then Sirius gasped as something grasped the mirror and yanked back.

Sirius pulled harder on the string. Bewildered, he watched as the string stretched tighter and tighter, bending the brim and inexorably pulling his arm down into the hat.

"Sirius!" James cried in alarm. "Let go!"

Sirius shook his hand frantically. "I can't! It's wrapped around my fingers."

Frantic, James grabbed Sirius' arm and pulled with all his strength.

The string snapped, and both boys crashed backward onto the floor, falling from beneath the safety of the invisibility cloak.

The candles in the room flared to life, and they found themselves looking up at Albus Dumbledore.

"Mr. Potter. Mr. Black," said the Headmaster. "It's rather late to be visiting."

James sat up, his eyes huge. "We were... Uh, that is..."

"There's something in there," Sirius cried, his voice high-pitched. He pointed to the hat. "There's something in there, and it was trying to pull me in with it!"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "I expect the hat was a bit grumpy at being disturbed at this hour. You wouldn't like it if someone woke you in the middle of the night and dropped something down your throat, now would you?"

The boys scrambled to their feet. Belatedly, James bent and picked up the hat with two fingers, careful to only touch it by the brim.

"No, sir," James answered. "I don't think we'd like that at all." He held the hat out to the Headmaster.

Dumbledore made a gesture and the hat floated out of James' hands and back onto the shelf behind the desk.

Sirius stared at the hat for a long moment, then turned his attention back to Dumbledore. He ducked his head and then his shoulders squared and he lifted his head. "How much trouble are we in?"

"Quite a bit, I'd say," Dumbledore answered cheerfully. "Violating curfew, breaking into my office, disturbing an irreplaceable antique... Those are serious things. If I made a report of the matter, I'd have to notify your Head of House and your parents."

Both boys blanched at the prospect, then Sirius' eyes sharpened. "You said _if_ you made a report."

Dumbledore nodded. "I would be willing to forego punishment if you were to help me with something."

"Of course, sir. What can we do?" James asked quickly.

"I've noticed that Remus Lupin doesn't seem to have many friends," Dumbledore said. "Can you tell me why?"

James shrugged. "Lupin's pretty quiet. He's been sitting with Pettigrew at meals, but mostly he keeps to himself. Dunno why."

Dumbledore frowned slightly. "I would like you boys to befriend Mr. Lupin. He's somewhat shy, but I think that it would help him immeasurably to have more outgoing friends."

"And if we do that, then you won't tell McGona-- um, Professor McGonagall or our parents?" Sirius asked, his expression hopeful.

"I'd see no need to bother them with this," Dumbledore replied gravely. "It was nothing more than curiosity and high spirits."

James and Sirius looked at each other silently for a moment, then nodded to Dumbledore.

"We'll be friends with Lupin," James said. "And Pettigrew, too, if you want."

"Yeah," Sirius echoed. "We'll be friends."

"Good." Dumbledore smiled. "I think this will benefit all of you. Now, I'll escort you back to your dormitory." He pointed at the cloak, crumpled on the floor. "But I think the invisibility cloak will stay with me for the time being."

* * *

When Dumbledore returned to his office, the portrait of Phineas Nigellus spoke. "What are you playing at, Albus?"

"What do you mean?" Dumbledore stopped in front of the portrait, smiling.

"Bah." Phineas sneered. "That innocent act doesn't work with me. No one gets into this office without your knowledge. You were aware of those boys the minute they set foot in here, and that hat wouldn't play games with them unless it was something you wanted done. It stalled them until you could get dressed and down here, didn't it?"

"It was useful," Albus said slowly. "Now I won't worry so much about Remus Lupin. James and Sirius are high-spirited, but they're loyal. They won't betray Remus even if they discover his secret."

"You mean _when_ they discover his secret. He won't be able to hide it from his friends." Phineas shook his head. "You're making a mistake keeping that werewolf here. He's dangerous; you've set something into motion that will come to grief before it's all said and done."

Dumbledore turned back to Phineas and smiled. "You always were a pessimist." His tone was gently chiding. "Now it's very late, and I'm going back to bed."

Phineas gave a derisive snort, but nodded goodnight as Albus left the room.

From his place high on the wall, Phineas stared out through the windows at the full moon shining brightly in the night sky. "Not a pessimist, Albus," he said softly. "A realist. Not even you can stop the moon."

* * *

Written for the LiveJournal 30minutefics community. Thanks to shadowycat and knight0fswords for the quick betas.  



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